JOHNSTON, Iowa — The Iowa Senate candidates are set to debate for the first time on Wednesday night, and operatives on both sides of the aisle expect a contentious exchange.

It’s all about which candidate can be painted as too Trumpy or too liberal with less than one month left until Election Day in one of the most consequential Senate races in the nation.

Democratic candidate Josh Turek is expected to target GOP Rep. Ashley Hinson for enabling the war in Iran, making life less affordable for Iowans. Turek planned to attack the congresswoman for voting against a war powers resolution that would have limited Trump’s ability to continue the war in Iran without congressional approval, according to someone close to the Turek campaign.

An Iowa GOP political operative told MS NOW that Hinson, meanwhile, plans to paint Turek as “too liberal for Iowa,” as the state representative looks to be the first Democrat elected to the Senate from the Hawkeye State since 2008.

Turek is locked in a statistically tied race with a 1.6-percentage-point polling advantage over Hinson, according to FiftyPlusOne, in a state that went for Trump by 13 points in 2024. The Democrat is approaching the contest like he is behind as he campaigns on healthcare access for Iowans. He is part of a wave of Democratic candidates running in close Senate contests who are poised to gain in states that Trump won in the last presidential race, giving the party a real shot at retaking the majority with less than a month to go before Election Day.

“My life has been underdog, from the economic adversity, the health-care adversity, having my first surgery at one-day-old, 21 surgeries before the age of 12,” said Turek in an interview with MS NOW at the Iowa state fair in August.

After serving three terms in the House and hosting presidential hopefuls ahead of the 2024 Iowa caucuses, Hinson is no stranger to the national spotlight. But for Turek, tonight’s debate is a small taste of that attention.

Born with spina bifida, the Democrat uses a wheelchair, though that did not stop him from making the U.S. Paralympic basketball team. His campaign message melds his personal trials with the health-care industry with his goals of restoring full funding for Medicaid, expanding the Affordable Care Act and restoring Roe vs. Wade. Abortion is banned in Iowa once a fetal heartbeat is detected, typically around six weeks into pregnancy. There are some limited exceptions, including for medical emergencies and rape and incest, if those crimes have been reported.

Republicans have faced backlash from some Americans over prices at the gas pump following Trump’s war in Iran, which has constricted the global oil supply. Gas prices are currently $4.29 in the Hawkeye state, a huge jump from $2.79 a year ago. 

Hinson isn’t afraid to talk about affordability issues in her campaign. She often touts the First Home Savings Opportunity Act, a bill she sponsored in the House, meant to make homeownership more affordable for young families.  

But her campaign has been plagued by criticism from Turek on her alignment with Trump, as she voted seven times against House efforts to end the war in Iran. In September, she pivoted, calling for the “immediate and successful” end of the war.

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From MS Now.